Goodbye to Summer

The kids were home. That always makes me happy. Too happy maybe, since I wasn’t getting much done with all the wonderful distractions in the house. So I rented a tiny offsite office for two months. It was cheaper than office-ing at Starbucks (those drinks are way too tempting and can get expensive) and there were no calories to regret at the end of the writing day. I’m back home now, but I may do the same again next summer if the kids come home. Which I hope they will.

I also spent a week this summer on a writing retreat where I learned a lot about my creative self. One of the biggest lessons I learned is that I can be creative more hours a day IF I build in longish breaks for moderate exercise. For me, exercise not only prevents the tight hamstrings and sore fingers that haunt writers, it also allows the brain some down time and prevents burnout so that I don’t end up zombie-staring at the keyboard. Taking exercise breaks means I can sustain the creative process longer.

This summer Steve and I also celebrated our 26th wedding anniversary. On a blisteringly hot day we went to the ski shop to rig ourselves out for the snow vacation we’re planning this winter. Who’d have thought trying on parkas in 100+ degree weather could be such fun. Thanks for so many happy years, Sweetie. Laughing and cuddling through life with you is a blast.

So all in all it’s been a really good summer. But the kids are back at college now. Boots and sweaters are back on the store shelves and today the heat finally broke. We even got a little rain – Texas’s version of manna from heaven. I’ve thrown open the windows and I’ve been cleaning house and rearranging furniture all day. I may even go outside and wash the summer dust from the windows.